A variety of industries have been trending towards manufacturing equipment and other machinery that utilize as their energy source electric power rather than hydrocarbon fuels (e.g., gasoline and diesel). In particular, automakers continue to design and manufacture electric-powered vehicles that include electric motors. Examples of electric motors that automakers generally utilize include brushless direct current (BLDC) motors, brushed direct current (DC) motors, and alternating current (AC) induction motors. As an example, BLDC motors receive electric power through an inverter that generates an AC electric current to power multiple electromagnets, such as permanent magnets. The BLDC motor subsequently converts the received electric power to mechanical power by rotating a motor shaft. Often times, the electric motors within the electric-powered vehicles operate at relatively high current and power levels, which cause a variety of design and reliability concerns.
Electric-powered machinery typically include motor drive systems that monitor and control the electric motors. To maximize performance while minimizing reliability concerns and production cost, manufacturers generally aim to design a motor drive system that generates relatively low switch loss and electromagnetic interference (EMI). Unfortunately, a motor drive system that implements a relatively fast voltage change rate often produces a higher amount of EMI that affects cables and communication lines connected to the electric motors. Conversely, implementing a relatively slow voltage change rate reduces EMI, but causes higher switching loss and power dissipation. Higher switching loss and power dissipation typically cause reliability issues and limit the amount of current the motor driver is able to provide to electric motors. As such, producing a motor drive system that is able to minimize reliability concerns (e.g., EMI and temperature), package sizes (e.g., integrated circuit and heat sink sizes), and manufacturing costs while improving performance remains valuable for machinery with electric motors.